Trippet Foundation Helps OSU Students Succeed Nonprofit funds up to 40 scholarships a year. photo provided
F
ive years ago, Lindsay Blan had little reason for optimism. The youngest of her four boys was born in the 27th week of pregnancy, leading to an open valve in his heart and a chronic lung disorder, among other medical problems. Blan was homeless and “had no idea how I was going to fix things to turn my life around,” she says. Her mother took in the family of five and encouraged Blan to go to college. There, Blan discovered a path to success beginning with her passion for helping others. It included time at Tulsa Community College and OSU as well as a scholarship from the Robert S. and Helen Grey Trippet Foundation. Today, Blan is applying to a graduate program in speech pathology while finishing her degree in communication sciences and disorders in speech-language pathology.
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Bob and Helen Grey Trippet
“Before receiving this scholarship, school was not a possibility for me,” Blan says. “This scholarship opened opportunities for me to seek higher education and is still allowing me to do so.” Blan is the type of success story the Trippets envisioned when they created their nonprofit organization. Each year, it awards freshman scholarships to 10 Tulsaarea natives attending OSU, the University of Oklahoma and Northeastern State University. Recipients can earn renewal for each of the next three years by attending
classes, avoiding disciplinary issues and maintaining at least a 2.0 GPA. “We’re here to provide scholarships to at least C students who want to get an education for four years,” says Robert Simpson, president of the foundation that was established in 1990. “Our scholarships are designed to cover all tuition, fees and books — everything except room and board — for up to four years.” But when a recipient fails to earn a renewal, that scholarship is vacant until that class graduates. So while there could